1 Answer by Expert Tutors

Assuming you are seeking clarity as to the disputes ("issues") that arose between the original colonies and the British monarchy, its important to look at the concepts of Authority and Allegiance.

Particularly in United States History, the colonists were initially given permission (called "Charters") to travel and begin colonies in America. These colonies were formed to further the interests of the Monarchy commonly referred to as the Crown. While some colonies were founded as vehicles to pursue religious freedom from the Established Church of England, others were started to simply make money.

While investors were allowed to create joint-stock companies that funded the initial excision and interests in settling American colonies, it was seen that each colony was under the control and sovereign of the British Crown. That means that the Monarchy and representatives in Parliament were able to pass laws that were enforceable in the colonies. Each colony had a Royal Governor that maintained the British subjects living in the colonies. The Colonists no less were each considered British subjects regardless of whether they were born in England or America. This Mercantile System functioned primarily to improve trade and commerce for the mother country--Britain.

Issues arose in the 1760s as Colonists, who were then several generations removed from the original colonists from the 1600s, saw themselves less as British subjects and more as Americans. Considering that no Colonies had elected representatives to speak for them in Parliament, American Colonists that saw an increase in taxes (in truth prior to the 1760s there were virtually no taxes and the Americans were making a killing in their new industries) saw there was little reason to give Allegiance to Britain and in fact they began to question the Authority of the British Crown. The rallying cry known popularly in the 1760s and 1770s was "taxation without representation!" signaling that the Crown had no authority or consent from colonial representatives to tax the colonies.